My stand at the Adelphi Hotel in Liverpool 1988, can't remember
what convention... but "The Prisoner" stand was next to mine?

Back in 1982 I had my own advertising and design
business working mainly for the new homes trade...

The previous year, I suffered a very close call with a
miss-diagnosed appendix so, in 1982 I felt that I wanted to
do something I actually enjoyed... and started to paint! The
plan was to try and get noticed and Sci Fi was popular.
I got the "Challenger" commission and promoted that and
other prints from my paintings at various Sci-Fi conventions
around the UK.
At some point I'll take a leaf out of David Hardy's book
and paint some more serious subjects like Apollo and maybe
my own tour of the Solar System?
I'm not sure if this is really "art" (I use an airbrush and art-
school turned me down). I prefer to paint in a photo realistic
style... and not like a child would paint?

Click on individual images

From left to right: My first attempt (acrylic)... definately need to get an airbrush. "Orbit" (acrylic) yeah, that's better!
"Moonscape" (designers gouache) my first commission... and they kept the original!

A compimentary print of this painting was given to Richard Arnold
(Paramount Pictures Corporation / Star Trek Office) whom I met at
a "Trek" convention at the NEC, Birmingham in 1988.
Part of the painting features a small craft that I called "Defiant"...
the word is actually painted on there. Many years later, "Star Trek -
Deep Space Nine" featured a small ship called... "Defiant".

"Orbital Patrol" (gouache) I liked that one! "Challenger's Glory" (acrylic) That brown shape - bottom right is actually an
island off the "Horn of Africa" called Socotra (Republic of Yemen)... a lot of people seem to think it's the shadow cast by
Challenger itself.... which was typically at an altitude of 300 kilometres above the ground... think about it!